

Does HD cause people to sleep a lot?

July 27, 2015

Huntington's Disease Youth Organization



Does HD cause people to sleep a lot?

Q. Does Huntington’s cause the person to sleep a lot?

Carol, Young Adult, USA

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A. Hi Carol,

Thanks very much for your question. In general, HD does not normally lead to lots of oversleeping. However, some of the medications used to control movements and mood can make someone more sleepy. So, for most sleepy HD people, the first question I ask is “What medication are they taking?”. I think the next cause of sleepiness is boredom. So if there is not much to do, people with HD can sleep.

If for some reason, night time sleep is affected then the person might be catching up on sleep during the day. In the later stages of HD, I’ve know people sleep quite a bit for no particular reason.

So I would say, if a person with HD is sleeping a lot, you should look for a reason for that.

Best wishes